The Ranger's Daughter and the Arridi Slave
by Kennie Barton
Summary: The War that took the lives of two Rangers has finally passed through One Raven Pass. The head of the campaign has a devious plan to remove the threat of Ranger interference while he takes control of the Araluen army, using it as the base of his world-wide take over. Can Will and Angie stop him before an all out Ranger riot ignites? A thrilling sequel to The Ranger's Daughter.
1. Chapter 1

**Fifteen years ago**

The man stood over the small cloaked figure, his ragged breathing slowly returning to normal as he stared at the battered and bruised Araluen. He knew this man was Araluen, he was too tall to be Scotti, and the Scotti would never throw one of their own to the Pit. No, this man was a foreigner, and the oddest contender ever to enter the Pit.  
"Stand up and fight," the slave fighter commanded, tightening his grip on his perferred weapon, a cudgel. "I will not show mercy because you refused to stand."  
"And I will not fight for the entertainment of others," the man gasped, his blue eyes glowering at the Pit slave. "I will not obey them. I am a free man."  
"Then fight for your life," the slave pulled the cloaked figure to his feet. "Use those tiny knives to defeat me and stay a free man," he spat the last words. He wished for the chance the Scotti gave this strange figure in a mottled cloak. One victory and he received a lifetime of freedom. A victory for the slave only gave him one more day.  
"I will not," the man gasped again, his eyes hardening as he looked in the slave's mismatched eyes. "This is wrong."  
"I know," the slave raised the cudgel, his toned muscles rippling in the golden sunlight. "But it's the only option we have," the club fell, clipping the man over his left ear and sending him sprawling over the sandy ground again.  
Around them the crowd jeered, their rough language reverberating through the massive main arena of the Pit. The slave looked up from the free man, to the crowd who had cheered him through several years of cruel beatings from other slaves. They gathered to watch the fights, they did not care who it was or why, they just wanted a fight.  
He was used to this now, now the only person he cared about was the kilted Scotti who owned him; the one who had branded him with the eight pointed star at the base of his skull. The man who had given him an impossible choice: Fight this free man to the death or fight a massive beast taken from the mountains far to the north. The slave was no fool; a half starved slave could never defeat a massive animal that survived in the harsh mountains. He would fight the free man, and he was going to win against this free man.  
The kilted Scotti, a clan general, frowned down at his slave, this was not the fight he had wanted. The general was disappointed in how this was going. That would only end badly for the slave in the arena, facing the free man. The slave knew what he needed to do to resolve the general's disappointment.  
The cudgel fell heavily on the arena floor as the slave hosted the Araluen to his feet again. The free man could not hold one eye open, blood trickled down his face from the wound that had flattened him for the third time in the short amount of time they had been fighting. The slave lifted him higher, his toes barely scrapping the ground.  
"If you do not fight back, they will kill us both," he whispered, drawing the man closer as he spoke. "And your morals will be nothing for a pair of corpses."  
"I will not fight," the man started again.  
The slave's hands tightened around the collar of his opponent's tunic, "Don't be a fool! If you fight and the general likes it, you'll be free! You can go back to what life you had outside of this hell!"  
"I came here in service to the Queen of Araluen," the man seethed, his eyes locking with the slave's once more. "I will not fight for the entertainment of these people."  
"Do you not want to return home? Have you nothing to live for out there?" the slave threw his opponent across the arena, advancing after him quickly. "This is the one chance you have to get away."  
"I won't just leave. I have a mission," the man persisted.  
"Fool!" the slave raised his fist to let it fall on the free man's head, to render him unconscious.  
As the blow began to fall, the free man leapt from his back, one of his knives appearing in his hand. The hilt of the saxe knife smashed into the slave's nose. The slave staggered back several steps, blood streaming from his shattered nose, growling at the free man in the mottled cloak.  
"I don't want to kill you," the man held his hands up to the slave, but he still held the heavy saxe firmly. This was the desperate plea of a man who knew he could not win.  
"Then you're going to die," the slave wiped the blood from his upper lip, spitting as he advanced again.  
This time the slave was ready. He dodged the knife, ducking under the swing and slammed his fist into the chin of his opponent. The man flew through the air, his knife falling from his hands as the mottled stranger slid over the ground.  
"I am not going to die a slave," the young Arridi promised, bending down to retrieve the knife in the sand. "And if killing you is the only way to ensure that, I will."  
The two men stared at one another, both breathing heavily. The Araluen on the ground started to rise slowly, propping himself up on his elbows, spitting blood from his mouth.  
"I refuse to fight."  
"Then you choose death," the Arridi breathed, his gold and silver eyes matching the blue of the Araulen's.  
"When you get away from here," the Araluen spoke as the slave advanced, "find my daughter. Tell her why she lives without a father."  
"She will live," the Arridi spoke calmly. "She will live, even without a father. And that will be for the same reason I did," the slave continued.  
"And what reason is that?"  
"Men are cruel," the slave responded.  
The saxe knife fell on the chest of the mottled free man, the heavy blade burying itself in the rib cage of the young man. As the life blood of the man spilled into the sands, his blues eyes locked once again on the mismatched eyes of the slave. The slave squared his shoulders, waiting for the curse all the fallen spat with their dying breath.  
"The Rangers will stop this. And you will have the blood of Mark Pritchard on your hands."  
"Then I wish the Rangers luck," the Arridi wiped the blood from his lip again as he turned to the Scotti general. "They will need it to stop what the Scotti have planned."  
The Scotti smiled grimly, nodding his head briefly.  
It seemed Vladimir Ajam was going to live to fight another day.

* * *

**A/N This is the sequel to The Ranger's Daughter. I suggest you read the first adventure before continuing with this story, or the events following this chapter will not make much sense to you. If you've already read The Ranger's Daughter; Welcome back and I hope you enjoy the new installment of the Ranger Corps daughter's adventures.**


	2. Chapter 2

Evan reined in his shaggy grey pony at the edge of the clearing surrounding the Ranger cabin in Caraway Fief. He twisted around in the saddle to look back at his father's cabin one last time. Evan's father had been assigned a mission that required Evan to stay with another of the Rangers.  
He had no delusions that the girls would be joining him somewhere. He could never go to another Fief without the three of them showing up along the way. And he hated that.  
They were ten, he was almost fourteen. They were giggly girls, he was a young man. There were three of them and they always got more attention than he did. It should have been reversed. He was the boy, the only boy. All the Rangers should have wanted him, to train him and talk guy stuff with him. But no, they all doted on the girls.  
Evan sighed seeing his father exit the cabin to saddle his horse, saddle bags thrown over his shoulder and bow case in hand. Since he was still too young to be an apprentice, Evan could not join his father on the mission. Instead he was going to Redmont.  
That was another sour point to this dismissal from his father. Of all the Fiefs he could have been sent too, they were sending him to Redmont. The Ranger there was okay, Will Treaty had taught Evan to fire his first recuve bow when Evan was nine and had stayed with Will for a month. That had been his last stay anywhere without any of the girls. And Redmont was a beautiful Fief, the Keep was fascinating and it was close to Whitby, where Liam was stationed.  
But Angie was there. The first Ranger child.  
He had not even known there had been an older child. No one had ever talked about a fifth child. She had never been to a Gathering. She just showed up and everyone loved her. They had completely ignored him and the girls. Then the girls had pestered him for two whole weeks about who that girl with the broken leg had been.  
He was going to spend a whole month with her now.  
That was not exactly something that excited Evan.  
"You need to get going," his father called from the paddock at the side of the cabin.  
"I'm going," he called back turning and spurring his horse to a walk.  
It was early spring, the day was warm and new growth was popping up all along the road out of Caraway. Under different circumstances Evan would have loved the solitary ride, he was rarely alone outside of staying with one of his parents and it was a beautiful day. But the thought of spending his second stay in Redmont with all four of his sisters was depressing him.  
He was half way to Redmont, passing through rolling farmland where the farmers were out plowing their fields, when the first of the girls showed up. Rachel came charging down the road astride her horse Gale, her mottled cloak streaming out behind her and her auburn hair blowing around her face. She had cut it since he had last seen her, when the winter had started to set in; it no longer tied on her shoulder and looked like she had done the job herself.  
"Staying with Nick?" he asked when she pulled up beside him. Her mother Kara would never have allowed Rachel anywhere near her hair with a saxe.  
Rachel wrinkled her nose with a smile and brushed the uneven bangs back from her face. "I was with Gilan and Maddie in Castle Araluen," she answered running her fingers through the windblown tangles of the rough cut hair.  
"Your mum's going to kill them both," Evan laughed as they continued down the road.  
"Mum is on mission someplace," Rachel waved the concern aside with a smile, "and I heard after Redmont we're going to Meric to visit Sam."  
"Two Fiefs on one trip?" Evan asked, his brow rising. "Who would tell you something like that?"  
"I was practicing unseen movement and overheard Gilan talking to Maddie about it." She answered confidently, straightening in her saddle.  
"I think they knew they were there Rach, they were mocking you," Evan laughed watching Rachel's face drop in thought. "It was Gilan after all," he added to console the girl.  
"No, I was hiding in the wall, they had no idea I was there," she finally returned running her fingers through her hair again. Evan guessed she had cut it recently and was still unaccustomed to the length. "And they never make fun of me," she smiled knowingly at Evan, a dimple appearing on her right cheek and her hazel eyes sparklingly.  
"So where are the other two?" Evan decided to change the subject. He would never make her see that she had been mocked, Rachel was determined and stubborn.  
"Peyton was with her parents in Aspienne since Yule Tide. Olivia was with Bromley in Seacliff, helping him pack up to move to Castle Araluen. He told Gilan he was retiring because he was too old to sleep in ditches. I think she stayed in Seacliff to help the new Ranger settle in."  
So he was not the only one who had stayed with a parent since Yule time. Peyton was coming from Aspienne, so she was probably behind them on the road. He was supposed to ride with all of them to Redmont, there was safety in numbers and he was the only one who was any good with a bow.  
"Did Gilan say if we were supposed to meet somewhere?"  
Rachel looked at him with a single raised brow, an expression she had learned from Will Treaty in the handful of times she had met the infamous Ranger. Rachel was good at mimicking expressions, and could do excellent impressions. "We're all going to Redmont," she finally responded drily much like Gilan and Will. "At least that's where I'm going."  
Evan rolled his eyes and shook his head, "on the road, Rachel. Are we supposed to meet up together on the road?"  
"I'm sure we'll see them eventually. I mean there are only so many ways to Castle Redmont," her brow was still arched at him, her eyes still shining with mischief. "And the cabin only has one road to it."  
"Because Peyton and Olivia are renowned for their love of roads," he said sarcastically in return. Rachel laughed throwing her head back.  
"More like their ability to find the muddiest ditch in the whole kingdom and roll in it," Rachel's nose wrinkled, Evan chuckled.  
"You too," he added punching her lightly on the arm. Rachel grinned from ear to ear and spurred Gale to greater speed. "Hey," he shouted racing to catch up.  
They were on the very edge of Redmont Fief when Gale and Storm nickered greeting to other Ranger horses. Rachel stood up in her stirrups to see who was close, her hand shading her eyes from the midday sun. On the Ridge ahead of them stood a pair of shaggy Ranger horses, their riders silhouetted against the clear blue sky.  
"It's Olivia and Peyton," Rachel squealed dropping back in her saddle. "They're waiting on us, Evan. Let's go," she lay her heels into Gale's sides and raced off, leaving Evan in the dust.  
The girls were giggling when Evan caught up to them. Olivia had managed to bring her mane of red curly hair into a single braid that fell over her shoulder, and it looked like she had grown since he last saw her. Peyton's hair was in her normal braids on her shoulders, they almost reached her waist now.  
"It took you long enough," Olivia chided when Evan came up beside them. "We could have already been to Will's by now."  
"The day your horses can ride through half of Redmont in the amount of time for me to ride that ridge will be the day those flying horses come out of the story books you all cry over," the girls narrowed their eyes dangerously at him, all of them growling. He gave a sly smile and spurred Storm on with a touch of his heels.  
"Hey," the girls shouted urging their horses to chase after Evan.  
They were still racing when the Storm let out a low rumble in his chest. Evan drew back, slowing to a halt looking around the woods rubbing Storm's neck to let the horse know he had heard the warning. The girls came up, rushing past him and stopping a few meters later, stroking their horse's necks.  
Something was out there, it was not a threat but the horses did not know what it was yet. Evan looked down at his unstrung bow in his bed roll, panic settling heavily in his stomach. _Please let it be nothing_, Evan thought as his hand brushed against the hilt of his saxe knife.  
"Evan," Peyton whispered walking her horse Gust back to stand next to Evan. "Do you see anything?"  
Evan opened his mouth to reply but at the same moment all four of the Ranger horses let out low knickers in greeting. From out in the trees, two horses replied the greeting. Evan sighed in relief, it was Will.  
Tug was the first to come out on the road, followed closely by Starburst. The girls all gathered around Will and Angie, smiles spreading over their faces.  
"I knew they were around here somewhere," Will smiled at the gathered children, as if he had found them out in the forest someplace. "Running late as usual," he raised his brow at them.  
"It's Evan's fault," Rachel copied Will's expression flawlessly. "He took forever."  
"I was winning," Evan defended himself glaring at Rachel.  
"Only because we were letting you," Peyton smirked.  
"We were about to overtake you when we got the warning," Olivia finished with a knowing smile.  
"Where are you all going?" Angie asked, stopping any further argument about who was winning the race through Redmont. The girls and Evan all turned to stare at Angie, attempting to mimic Will's raised brow. Even Will gave her a withering look.  
"They're going to our cabin Angie," Will sounded like he was repeating information. "They're our guests for a few weeks."  
"Awesome," all five of the Rangers children sighed slumping down in their saddles.


	3. Chapter 3

The paddock behind the cabin was crowded with horses, Angie did not think it was good that so many were in the corral at once. It was meant for two, three at the most, not six. She looked at the crowded yard with a sigh. Starburst was standing shoulder to shoulder with one of the girls horses and seemed generally displeased with the accommodations.  
She was generally displeased with the accommodations too. The girls were crowding into her room to sleep for the next month. A whole month! How was Will expecting anything to get done with a bunch of children tailing after them?  
She had only briefly met the four of them at the Gathering, on the very last day. She did not have the time to really get to know them then, she had still been suffering from a broken leg and arm and she had been surrounded by Rangers and apprentices the majority of the week. What she had determined about them was that they seemed nice enough. But that was before they were crowded into her room to stay.  
"Poor Striker," one of the girls appeared beside Angie. She managed not to jump, but her heart rate was going crazy.  
Angie turned to smile down at the girl, her red hair in a braid over her shoulder. "Poor all of them," she agreed trying to remember which child was standing beside her.  
"Poor Tug especially," the girl sighed climbing up to stand on the fence, her arms crossing on the top run. "He had this whole thing all to himself ever since Maddie moved to Castle Araluen and now look at him…" she twisted her mouth looking at Will's old horse, who had managed to get in the lean to stable.  
"I know the sentiment," Angie grumbled leaning with her back against the fence looking out into the trees.  
"This is the first time we've ever stayed with an apprentice," the girl commented looking up at Angie with a reproachful glance, making sure Angie knew she had been heard.  
"So you travel around a lot?"  
"We've stayed with all of the Rangers," she answered. "Well, we have now. Evan stayed with Will once by himself, but that was before we had horses when we didn't travel so much."  
The way she was talking it seemed like the three girls were actual sisters, not just children of the Rangers. Somewhere in the back of her mind Angie had the thought Will had said the girls were all the same age and Evan was just a few years older. But he had never confirmed that the girls have different parents. They did not resemble one another, but they did everything together.  
"It must have been nice," the girl commented when Angie failed to respond.  
"What?"  
"Living in one place all your life, I bet you had lots of friends," she said wistfully, a smile spreading across her face. "My only friends are Peyton, Rachel and Evan, everyone else tends to avoid us. You know all that talk of black magic." She sighed dropping her chin on her crossed arms.  
Angie looked over her shoulder at the girl. She had never thought about it like that. Angie's childhood had been a far cry from what the girl was thinking, but it must have been better than what Evan and the girls were going through. Never staying in one place long, not having any friends because of fear.  
She had always resented being sent to the Ward at Redmont, once she knew the truth she would have preferred to live with the Rangers. Maybe it had been for the best she grew up away from them. At least she had the chance for friendships, if Johnny had not turned them all against her.  
Johnny Pritchard had been a boy in the ward at Castle Redmont with Angie. He had spent their entire childhood bullying Angie due to reasons he refused to talk about. Last summer the two of them had traveled to Skandia together and saved each other's lives. As it turned out the two of them were cousins, their fathers had been brothers. They were close now, even though Johnny now lived in Castle Araluen to train with King Horace.  
"I'm Olivia, by the way," Olivia climbed up, straddling the fence next to Angie, holding her hand out. Angie smiled taking the girl's hand, she had a strong grip. "My parents are Richard and Britt."  
Angie could remember meeting Richard and Britt. Britt had practically smothered Angie at the Gathering because of her injuries. Richard had tested her on her connotative thinking and planning. This girl looked nothing like either of them.  
"So which one do you normally stay with?"  
"Neither," Olivia sighed. "A week with mum, a week with dad, a few weeks at Castle Araluen then a stay in some Fief for a month or so."  
"I take it you like traveling," she smiled at Olivia so the girl would know she was joking. Olivia grinned back.  
"Yes, we do," she nodded laughing. "I love to see the country."  
Olivia suddenly swung her leg over the railing and jumped to the ground inside the paddock. Angie started to ask what she was doing when she heard the sound of the cabin door opening and steps on the veranda. Angie turned to look over her shoulder for the girl, her mouth hanging open stupidly. What was happening?  
"Angie," Angie spun back around to face Will. "I know we have guests, but you still have to practice."  
"Practice," Olivia reappeared from her hiding place, leaping up on the fence. "What are we practicing Will?"  
"You can practice whatever you want," Will smiled at the girl. "Angie is increasing her shooting range."  
"I can shoot a bow," Olivia grinned climbing up to straddle the fence beside Angie. "Daddy taught me and Peyton and Rachel last summer at the Gathering."  
"He did?" Will helped the girl down from the fence, smiling. "Well, if we all know how to shoot a bow we should all just show Will how good we are."  
"You're speaking in the third person," Olivia scrunched up her nose at the bearded Ranger.  
"I was," Will's brow rose in shock. She nodded giggling.  
"But you're right, we should show you how good we are."  
"Lead the way," Will gave a mock bow to Olivia. She giggled again, thanking him and started around for the front of the cabin where Peyton and Rachel were waiting for her.  
Angie looked between Will and the retreating figure of the child, dumbfounded. He had never acted like that with her, he had lost his fierce, foreboding look Angie had come to expect as normal. He was a different man, and the only thing that girl had done was say she knew who to shoot a bow.  
"Come on Angie," Olivia's head reappeared from the veranda, "We want to show you how good we are too."  
Angie sighed pushing herself away from the corral and started around for the front of the cabin behind Will. Maybe having the girls around was not going to be as bad at Angie had originally thought.  
Or maybe it could be even worse.  
Will might have been acting different, goofy and childish in the presence of their young guests, but he was still the gruff old man Angie had been living with for close to a year. And as if to prove that he intended on treating Angie exactly the same, he made her go first. And he let the girls and Evan add their commentary.  
The very first thing out of their mouths, all four of them, was that Angie was shooting with the wrong hand. The second comment was that her stance was backwards, courtesy of Peyton. "She's facing the wrong way."  
"This is the way she shoots," Will explained. "Angie's left handed."  
"So she does everything backwards?" Evan asked with a failed copy of Will's raised brow.  
"It's not backwards," Will tried to explain, but all he could think of as an example was that it was backwards from how the four of them did things. "It's just different, and we're not commenting on this. Watch her shoot."  
"If we're watching her shoot, we're watching how she stands. I would comment on that if I was teaching someone to shoot."  
Will gave Peyton a withering look. "Are you suggesting I failed to properly teach my apprentice how to fire one of her primary weapons?"  
Peyton shook her head quickly, shrinking under Will's gaze. "No sir," she managed to squeak.  
Will turned to the other three, "Do any of you wish to offer more commentary about her stance? Or are you going to wait until Angie has fired before speaking?"  
"We'll wait" Rachel offered quietly. Will nodded and turned back to Angie.  
"If you would," he motioned to the target set up a hundred and fifty yards away.  
Angie turned to the target and drew her arrow back. The string slapped against her arm five times before the first arrow hit the center of the bull's-eye. The other four formed a tight circle around the first. She smiled turning to look at Will, who had not overseen one of her archery sessions since they were in Hallasholm.  
"I want to go," Peyton leapt up from the ground, sliding a bracer on her arm as she ran up next to Angie.  
"Wait," Will tried to stop her but she had already nocked, drawn and fired before Will could get the word out. The arrow zipped through the air hitting the outer edge of the target. She turned beaming to Olivia and Rachel. Will covered his eyes with a hand. "I have targets set up for you," he muttered quietly, pointing to a second range set up beside where Angie was shooting.  
"If she can hit a hundred and fifty, I can," Olivia leapt up and ran to elbow her way in to stand between Angie and Peyton. Her recurve bow was had a slightly heavier draw weight, she was a few months older than Peyton.  
She drew and fired as quickly as Peyton had, her arrow landing on the outer most edge of the center. Beaming the girl turned to Will, who sighed again and motioned to Rachel, "you might as well too."  
Rachel looked to Evan before slowly come up to her feet and sighed as she pulled on her tab. Peyton and Olivia separated to let her stand at the firing range, she shuffled at the range before she took her stance to fire. Rachel took a deep breath before she drew her bow, her shot took longer than the other two, and when she did fire it scraping against the very bottom of the target, the head burying in the ground a meter behind the target.  
Peyton and Olivia snickered behind their hands looking at Rachel's shot. Rachel's shoulders dropped with her head, she turned away and went to rejoin Evan. She pulled the tab off her fingers roughly and threw them on the ground next to Evan.  
"Don't worry Rach," Evan gave the youngest of the girls an encouraging smile as she dropped beside him. "Everyone has to work to shoot farther away."  
"Shut up," she muttered brushing her bangs out of her face. "I didn't want to practice archery anyway."  
Will gave Olivia and Peyton reproachful glance before squatting down in front of the young Ranger's daughter. He smiled at the child waiting for her to look up at him, slowly her hazel eyes came up to meet his brown ones. "I think that was an excellent shot."  
"I missed the target," her eyes flickered toward the accused target then back to Will's. "Miserably."  
"You grazed it," Will corrected with a smile. "And for a nine year old, that's an excellent shot."  
"I'm ten," Rachel huffed.  
"Barely," Peyton commented, earning a snort from Olivia and a renewed glare from Will.  
"Even better, now, why don't I help you for a while? We'll get you shooting like Ole Gray Beard Halt in no time," he picked Rachel's tab up and offered it to the girl. She looked at the tab then up to Will and gave a small smile, accepting the tab.


	4. Chapter 4

"Block, underhand, overhand, spin, up, duck, now," Angie's saxe spun over her hand as she spun to lunge past Will's defenses. Her hand wrapped around the leather binding of the hilt as she thrust her saxe where Will's side was exposed. His small throwing knife slapped the flat of her heavy saxe, throwing her arm wide. Unbalanced Angie stumbled out of Will's defenses, losing the precious advantage she so desperately fought to win. Will's other hand struck across Angie's shoulders, knocking her face first to the ground.  
"Ow," she whined rolling over to look up at the Ranger. "Was that really necessary?"  
"Would you rather I had demonstrated all the ways I could have just killed or crippled you?" He arched his brow at her, sliding his knives back into their scabbard.  
"Cut the hamstring, knife in the side, slit my throat, break my arm," she sighed climbing to her feet and dusting herself off. "You killed and crippled me five times today already."  
"And you still haven't learned." He looked down on his apprentice, who was still failing to grasp the basic concept of the exercise. "Now, what did you do wrong?"  
"I was off balance, my foot slipped," she held the offending foot up for Will's inspection, "and you moved!"  
"I wasn't going to let you stab me," Will pushed Angie's foot down. "And that shouldn't have been enough to dislodge you. Always be firm, hold your position."  
"I was moving," she groaned, using her hands to fully express the aggravation of Will's cryptic instructions. "You can't hold position and move at the same time."  
"That's why you have to stay firm, your arm could have moved but your body should not have," Will explained.  
Angie sighed stretching her arms and rolling her shoulders. "Moving and not moving," she shook her head getting ready and drew her knives. "Something like this?" She lunged at Will.  
His knives leapt to his hands, blocking her advances. Angie spun, ducking under Will's arms and coming in for a jab with the hilt of her saxe. She hit his side, spinning out aiming a hit with her throwing knife. Will's arm dropped on Angie's, knocking the blade from her hand and sending it spinning away from them. Angie was still moving, her saxe blocking against Will's. Will pulled out with his saxe, aiming for her legs while the throwing knife moved up through her defenses.  
The heel of Angie's right hand stopped a hair's breadth from Will's chin. Will had a knife at her throat and his saxe hovering over the back of her knee, ready to cut her hamstring. Angie's saxe was prone to dig into Will's ribcage, the tip lightly touching his tunic.  
"Right?" she asked, grinning up at her mentor, her eye twitching in an attempt to mimic Will's expression.  
"Tell me, what do you think would happen if we went one step farther?" He had one brow raised, a slight smile pulling at his lips.  
"I'd knock you back with my hand and stab you with my saxe," Angie instantly responded, tapping Will's chin with her hand and his side with her saxe. Will nodded like he had been expecting that response.  
"But I have two knives on you." Angie looked down to see what Will was talking about. She had completely forgotten his knives. Her brow furrowed looking at the knife under her chin. "And you would have stepped right into one of them when you hit me."  
Angie gulped stepping back from Will sliding her saxe in the scabbard. "So I lose again?"  
"It's a draw," Will put his knives away, watching Angie retrieve the throwing knife he had knocked from her hand. "I think that's enough for today. Why don't you go find the others and we'll go for a patrol."  
"You're taking the children on patrol?" She had been with Will for five weeks before she got to go on a patrol. He had claimed she still needed to refine her skills, and Angie had begged for an entire week before Will finally took her out. They had started working on tracking while they were out that first day too, making Angie slightly regretful that she had begged so much to go. The others had only arrived the day before, and he was taking them out on a patrol.  
"They've gone on patrols before. They're more than capable," he responded starting back for the cabin. "I think Evan is inside working on his cartography."  
"And the girls are?" Angie looked around the clearing for some sign of the three girls. There was no sign of them, or the dog. She looked back at Will, hoping he would give some clue to their whereabouts. The man said nothing as he climbed the steps to the veranda.  
The only clear course of action was to ask Evan if he had seen which direction the girls had gone. She charged up the steps and followed Will into the cabin looking for Evan, who had joined the others in the vanishing act.  
"He's not here," she announced exiting Will's room.  
"Saddle up, let's go find them."

Evan slipped out of his saddle looking down at the tracks in the soft ground. The girls had passed through there on foot. He scratched his temple looking for signs of the horses, they had been taken from the cabin but the girls were traveling without them.  
"I don't get it Storm," he stood up looking around the woods. "Where'd the horses go?"  
_After the girls,_ Storm answered.  
"You're a wealth of information," Evan muttered swinging up in his saddle. "Anymore suggestions, like where that is?"  
_I'm just a horse,_ Storm shook his head starting along the trail the girls had taken.  
Evan leaned over Storm's neck watching the ground. Normally Evan would not have cared if the girls ran away, but Will was working with Angie and had not noticed the girls leaving. Redmont was a large Fief, filled with who knew what kind of outlaws. The girls were trained to defend themselves but they were still only little girls.  
"Why would they just run off?" he asked himself aloud. "They've wanted to stay with Will since they were seven."  
Storm shook his head again. Evan sat up looking at Storm's head. The horse had nothing to say, that was surprising. The boy shook the surprise away looking back at the ground, he had to find the girls and get back to the cabin before Will noticed they were gone.  
He rode in silence, watching to see if the girls had met up with their horses somewhere. At one point he had to dismount and crawl over a ridge overgrown with brambles, Storm circled around the tangled plants to meet Evan on the other side. It was there that the girls had joined with their horses, and started heading south, back toward the cabin.  
"They're just out riding around," he exclaimed a little louder than he had anticipated. "I'm out here for nothing!"  
He could have been at the cabin working on some skill, talking to Will, exploring Castle Redmont. He could have been doing a whole handful of other things. He clicked his tongue and got Storm going. He was going back to the cabin. The girls would be there when he got back and he would get in trouble for going off on his own, just like every other time he tried to keep them out of trouble.  
"Stupid girls," he grumbled, urging Strom to a gallop.

"Whoa Striker," Olivia pulled back on the reins, standing up in the stirrups to get a better view. The red walls of Castle Redmont were smudges on the horizon. "We're heading the right way, I can see the red walls," she sat back in the saddle turning to Rachel and Peyton.  
Peyton rolled her eyes, "I knew we were going the right way."  
"You did not," Rachel ran her fingers through her hair, brushing twigs and leaves out in the process. "You were as lost as we were."  
"You don't know anything," Peyton huffed crossing her arms. "I'm never lost."  
"Except when you asked us how to get back to Will's," Olivia clicked her tongue to get Striker moving once again. "And we really do need to be getting back. They've probably noticed we're gone by now."  
"We can handle ourselves," Peyton gave a very warm smile, like she was trying to persuade Olivia and Rachel. "I mean we are the children of Rangers."  
"Exactly Peyton." Rachel chided. "We're children, and we didn't tell Will that we were leaving."  
"It's not like this is the first time we went off without telling someone," Peyton flipped her braids over her shoulders.  
"But this is our first time in Redmont," Olivia whispered leaning over Striker's neck. "We don't know our way around."  
"Then Will should have engaged us," Peyton retorted. "We sat there all morning, and all he had us doing was busy work."  
"He has an apprentice," Rachel tried to console her. "We knew it was going to be different. He can't spend all his time on us."  
"Don't care," Peyton turned her nose up, looking away from Rachel and Olivia. "If Will didn't have the time to watch us, then we should have gone somewhere else."  
Rachel sighed behind Peyton, shaking her head. They had all been told it was going to be different staying with a Ranger training an apprentice. The three of them had been told that Will would be more concerned with training Angie than finding fun activities for them. Gilan had repeated that to her at least a dozen times before she left Castle Araluen, the others must have received the same lecture.  
"It was Will's turn," Rachel drew up beside Peyton. "And you were excited about it. We get to spend time with Angie."  
"Some time," Peyton glared at Rachel. "All we did together was archery, and that wasn't even really together because she has a further range. And Will was giving you special treatment."  
"Stop it Peyton," Olivia snapped from the other side. "Quit acting like some spoiled little brat. Rachel needed help with archery. And when we get to knife throwing or hand to hand, Will will give you special treatment because you'll need it."  
Peyton turned on Olivia with a scowl. "And you're just perfect right?"  
"She didn't say that Peyton."  
"Be quiet Rachel," Peyton turned on Rachel. "I was yelling at Olivia."  
"You shouldn't be yelling at anyone. Gilan told us all at the Gathering that we would end up staying with someone who has an apprentice. And everyone is bad at something, so stop it." Olivia narrowed her eyes at Peyton, her green eyes flashing dangerously.  
"You can't boss me around. Just because you're the oldest doesn't mean you're in charge," Peyton's blue eyes flashed. "I don't have to listen to you."  
"I never said I was in charge," Olivia growled at Peyton. "And I don't want to be in charge of you, you're unbearable!"  
"Unbearable?!" Peyton shrieked standing up in her stirrups so Olivia would have to look up at her.  
"Yes! Unbearable," Olivia shouted back, standing up in her stirrups so she was on the same level as Peyton. "You act like you're so mistreated. All. The. Time!"  
"Guys," Rachel leaned across Peyton to take hold on Striker's reins, stopping all three of the horses. "You need to stop, someone's watching us," she hissed looking between Peyton and Olivia.  
"There's always someone watching us. We have Ranger cloaks," Olivia, always the voice of reason, offered taking Striker's reins back from Rachel. "There's no reason to worry."  
"There is reason to worry. If you two would stop arguing you would have heard the warnings," Rachel whispered motioning with her eyes at Gust and Striker.  
In the silence that followed Rachel's warning the girls could hear the low rumbles of the horses. Rachel stroked Gale's neck letting him know she had heard the warning. Olivia stared past Peyton's shoulder, scanning the area and continuing their conversation.  
"And if you would just take the time to realize it's not all about you, I bet more people would like you."  
Peyton scanned the trees over Olivia's shoulder. Her jaw dropped in mock surprise, "People like me."  
"You're just unbearable," Olivia repeated quickly, tightening her grip on her reins. Striker's head bobbed to let Peyton and Rachel know she had seen who was following them.


	5. Chapter 5

Peyton's hand slid slowly toward her saxe sheathed on her hip. She was still horrible at throwing the saxe, but it was better than meeting a threat unarmed. And they were unarmed since it would be noticeable if they lifted the bows from their saddles.  
"If I'm so unbearable, why do you still do stuff with me?" Peyton's tone grew shriller as she continued the pretend fight.  
They had learned this trick when they first started traveling. If they were being watched they needed to act as if they were still alone, to continue the same as they had before. As long as the watchers thought the target was unaware they would relax. This would give the girls a slight advantage, and they would need every advantage they could get when facing an opponent.  
"Like we have a choice," Olivia returned with a tone to rival the shrill pitch of Peyton's. "They've lumped us together since we were born." Olivia's hand was reaching down for her saxe too. She could throw it with impressive accuracy for a ten year old; hopefully she could give them time to get their bows up. "I'm sure Rachel agrees with me."  
"You're both being ridiculous," Rachel responded, her hand reaching for her favorite new tool, the strikers. Gilan had taught her to use them when she had stayed at Castle Araluen before riding for Redmont, he had noticed her skill in hand to hand and decided to give her some advantage in the fights. "Fighting isn't going to solve anything."  
"Quit being such a baby. Tell us how you really feel," Peyton snapped whipping around to look at Rachel, hoping to catch a glimpse of whoever was tracking them. All she could see were the trees. Whoever was out there was a skilled as a Ranger in unseen movement.  
Even though Rachel knew it was a ploy, it still hurt to hear Peyton call her a baby. She lost her train of thought about the argument. "Um," Rachel brushed her cloak back too far as she pulled out her strikers. The sun stuck the polished metal sending a warning flash out through the foliage.  
_Thrum, thrum, thrum._ The sound of long bows came from the right hand side of the road. The girls pulled on their reins, hauling the head and shoulders of their mounts to the left.  
The horses stopped and rolled over in the middle of the road, dropping the girls out of the line of fire. Young Bob had specially trained the horses the girls and Evan rode so that they could protect them. Olivia, Peyton, and Rachel's horses even more so since they had been trained for three years knowing exactly who they were going to. One of these specialized tricks was to drop anytime they sensed any form of immediate danger when the children were alone, and lay over top of them. The horses' safety was slightly less important than the girls'.  
The girls rolled under their mounts as the arrows whizzed over them, burying the heads in trees on the other side of the road.  
"Arrows," Olivia whispered nocking her bow. "I heard three bows."  
"Four arrows," Rachel responded putting her strikers away so she could draw her bow. Someone had fired two shots at once, or two of the archers had fired at exactly the same moment. Either was possible, the girls had seen Will and Maddie demonstrate such things at the Gathering. But that was bad news for the Ranger children.  
"We're outnumbered," Olivia peered out from under Striker, looking for the pursuers she had seen before the attack. "And out skilled, they're probably adults and mercenaries."  
"It's just a small problem," Rachel gave a forced smile at the other two. "'One Ranger, one riot,' right?" She gave a very playful expression like the one a majority of the Rangers gave the girls at the Gathering when they were younger.  
"I think _this_ counts as a big problem," Olivia snipped glaring at Rachel, Rachel's face fell quickly to one of remorse. "Three children are not the equivalent a full-fledged Ranger."  
"But we're Ranger children," Rachel protested.  
"Three apprentices wouldn't equal an experienced Ranger. This is a problem, Rachel."  
"One that we wouldn't have if you'd been paying attention," Peyton hissed at the younger girl. "Even a blind old man could have seen you were drawing something!"  
"Stop it," Olivia hissed. "You don't know why we were fired at. It might have just been a warning shot." It was a reasonable assessment, but all Rachel had heard was Payton's insult.  
"If you think I'm so horrible, you take the flank," Rachel slid away from Peyton, rolling into Gale's saddle and clicking her tongue. The horse came to her feet and charged straight at the threat.  
"Rachel!" Olivia rolled up into Striker's saddle, "Don't do anything stupid!"  
Rachel ignored Olivia again. She was going to take out whoever had shot at them. She laid her heels into Gale's sides, spurring her over a fallen tree. She was going to prove herself to Peyton, she may be the youngest but she was not a baby.  
"Idiot," Peyton breathed rolling into Gust's saddle ridding after Rachel and Olivia.  
Rachel charged through the trees, her hand reaching for the strikers. It was something she could do, something the other two had not learned because Gilan had taught her. The Ranger Commandant had taught her something because he saw she was ready. Her hand wrapped around the cool metal, a smile touched her lips.  
She saw nothing as she tore through the forest. Whoever had shot at them had gone after the shots, backing the theory that the shots had been warnings only. The trees blurred around her, and a trail appeared beneath Gale's hooves. Had Rachel been looking for clues, she would have been curious. But the girl was focused on one thing, proving herself to Peyton and Olivia.  
The wall appeared several kilometers off the road. The rough hewn lumber panels reached up into the canopy and stretched out in either direction. Rachel did not see it until it was too late. She could not turn because of the surrounding trees. All she could do was hope Gale could stop in time.  
Gale skidded to a stop before the wall built through the forest, whinnying as she tried not to throw the young girl in the saddle. It failed miserably. Rachel had a loose grip on her reins from where she had taken up her strikers, not only that, but she had been standing in the stirrups and flew head first, over her horse's head, at the wall.  
Rachel sat up slowly rubbing her head, "well that went well," she muttered looking up at the offending wall. Why was there a wall in the middle of a forest? More importantly why was there a wooden wall so close to Castle Redmont? It appeared to be a palisade, but for what?  
"Rachel, are you—what in Gorlog's beard is this?" Olivia drew Striker up next to Gale, retaining her seat in the saddle.  
"A wall," Rachel replied dryly standing up and dusting herself off.  
"In the middle of a forest?" Peyton gave her own impression of Will's quizzical look.  
"I'd say it's new," Rachel looked back at the trail that had appeared beneath her horse.  
"It is. Look the ground is loose around the posts," Peyton leaned over Gust's neck to look at the ground, pointing at the disturbed earth around the wooden beams. "It can't be more than a few days old."  
"Then Will will know what it is?" Rachel swung up in her saddle looking at the wall.  
"Unless it's something secret," Olivia offered.  
"The Ranger would know about it, Will and Angie should know what this is," Rachel lightly massaged her head where she had been thrown against the wall.  
"Or we could figure it out on our own," Peyton smirked, her eyes flashing as she looked down the length of the newly constructed wall.  
"No," Olivia grabbed Gust's reins to stop Peyton from riding off. "Have you forgotten that someone shot at us?" she hissed.  
"It might have been a warning," Rachel repeated Olivia's earlier comment.  
"That means we shouldn't be here."  
"All the more reason to see what's going on," Peyton smiled, clicking her tongue to urge Gust into a walk. "Rangers are inquisitive, we need to know things."  
"We're not Rangers, Peyton," Olivia shook her head.  
"And looking into this is not something we ever trained for."  
"We could get in trouble."  
"Or get yourselves hurt," all three of the girls turned around quickly to see who had snuck up on them. The man wore a hauberk with a red surcoat.  
A knight from Redmont was sitting on a great bay battle horse looking down at the three of them. He had a bent nose that had been broken twice, once for the original break and again after it had healed to attempt straightening the nose. He had his hand on the hilt of his sword, and an easy grip on his reins, but his expression spoke his anger.  
"You do know this area is off limits to civilians," it was more statement that question, and it portrayed the knight's message clearly. They were not supposed to be anywhere near that wall.  
When he went to check on the new facility for training the battle school students, Sir Brian had not intended on seeing anyone near the area. This check was just a customary annoyance. No one was ever that far out in the woods. And no one had ever found the new facility before. Now three little girls were at his gate, on his road, where they were not supposed to be. Not only that, but he did not know these girls. Strangers were at his facility.  
"We're not," Olivia turned her horse to face the knight, not finishing the sentence as she pulled her oakleaf charm out of her tunic. "We're part of the Queen's Rangers. Someone shot at us and we were checking things out."  
They had been shot at because they were armed. His archers only shot at armed threats. These girls hardly counted as threats. His troops were getting skittish, that would have to be addressed.  
"We didn't know your wall was here," Peyton quickly lost her look of confidence, trading it in for one of innocence.  
"A little young to be Ranger's," Sir Brian eyed them critically, ignoring the charm Olivia provided for him, their signal as members of the Ranger Corps, and the story about being shot at. "Now, why don't you tell Battle Master Brian the truth, and I'll let you go with a warning."  
"But, we are with the Rangers, Sir," Rachel spoke quietly looking up at the imposing figure on the battle horse. "We're staying with Will Treaty and his apprentice for the next four weeks."  
The knight's brow rose in a poor attempt to mimic Will's expression, the girls could guess that this man had spent a fair amount of time with Will, and like most people he enjoyed trying to copy the look. The small, kindly smile the knight had gained vanished quickly. "Do you take me for a fool?" he asked in a very controlled tone.  
"No sir," the girls answered quickly. "But we are staying with Will Treaty," Peyton continued. "The Commandant sent us to stay with Ranger Will."  
"And why would the Ranger Commandant do that?" They could tell the knight did not believe them. The girls knew it was a hard concept to grasp, why would three little girls be staying with a Ranger? Especially one who was already training an apprentice?  
"Because we've never got to stay with him," it sounded like a stupid reason even to Rachel. Why was the truth always so hard to accept? "And everyone else was busy."  
"Wouldn't Ranger Will be busy? He has an apprentice?" the knight gave up on attempting Will's quizzical expression. He narrowed his eyes at the girls, waiting on the answer he would ignore.  
The girls looked at one another, then to the knight. They had told the knight the truth and he did not believe their story. If they stayed they would be in trouble, well more trouble. And once they made it back to the clearing Will would be furious, they all knew that. If they returned escorted by a disbelieving knight, the girls could see their lives coming to a rapid end. And they all thought the same thing at the same time.  
Three small barrel shaped horses went from a standstill to a gallop instantly, blowing past the knight's battle horse and leaving Sir Brian in a cloud of dust. Sir Brian shouted wheeling his horse round to take off after them. But when he turned, the girls were already gone.  
"Children these days," The Battle School Master muttered clicking his heels to his horse's side. "Think they can just do as they please."  
From farther along the wall a man watched the girls ride off. He nodded to himself, confirming what he had already believed to be true. The Rangers had children floating in their ranks and three of them were together in Redmont where he was recruiting. His plan would fall together flawlessly.  
Silently the man turned and started through the woods. He would have to keep a close watch on the girls to learn their habits. Abduction took a lot of planning.


	6. Chapter 6

Angie sighed rolling her head on her shoulders. She could go on patrol. That was something she enjoyed. This whole searching for little girls and Evan was annoying, and bothersome, and pointless. Will had told her that they were partially trained as Rangers. At ten years old the girls were skilled in more areas than Angie was. That meant the four of them could handle themselves, Will never made this much fuss when Angie slipped off.  
She knew. She watched him sit at the cabin and do nothing for hours anytime she snuck away for an afternoon. Sure, there was the possibility that he knew she was there watching him. But a little reaction would have been nice.  
The sun had finally dropped beneath the canopy when Will held his hand up to signal a stop. And Angie was ready for it, she was tired, hungry, and fed up with looking for the children. She barely knew them, she was allowed to be tired of them. Will brushed his cowl back and turned in his saddle to look at Angie.  
"I'm going to keep looking. You should go back to Redmont and see if anyone in the keep has seen any of them."  
"And if they have?" she asked, half managing to mimic Will's withering gaze.  
"Either find them and take them to the cabin, or start searching again," he answered. "I'm going to head north and swing around to the east. You can go west from the keep and circle south."  
"That will just have us walking around in circles," Angie complained standing up in her stirrups and stretching. "And if one of us finds them, the other one won't know."  
"Then you have a suggestion?"  
Angie wrinkled her nose as she sat back in her saddle on Starburst. She knew Will would never agree to her plan. Angie's plan was to go home and wait. And she knew better than to say that to Will. "No," she sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I'll go to Redmont and see if the soldiers have seen anything."  
Angie clicked her tongue, turning Starburst around.  
"Do you remember where Sir Brian is building his new Battle School?"  
"Of course," Angie drew Starburst to a stop and twisted in her saddle to look back at Will.  
Sir Brian had asked Will and Angie to help scout a good location for the new Battle School. The one in the red keep was becoming crowded, and in desperate need of repairs, so Baron Zander petitioned Queen Cassandra for a new facility. She agreed and so the plans were underway for a new Battle School.  
"What about it?"  
"We'll meet there in four hours," at least now there was some kind of plan besides riding in circles. Angie nodded to Will and clicked her tongue again. She liked having some kind of plan.  
It seemed like no time at all when Angie rode up the High Street in Wensley toward the drawbridge. She arrived just in time, the bridge was about to be raised for the night. She stopped in the yard looking around for Thomas, the guard captain, or the Battle Master.  
"Just in time Ranger," a guard called from his post. "Any later and you would have had to wait for the boards."  
"Wouldn't want that," she smiled swinging down from her saddle. "Where's Thomas? I have business."  
"He would be in the keep," the guard took hold of Starburst's reins, "can I stable your horse?"  
"Water only, I have to go back out," she stoked her horse's muzzle gently.  
"Of course Ranger."  
Angie crossed the yard quickly, climbing up the steps into the keep two at a time and started down toward the guard room. She passed by several of the guards, who gave her curious glances on the way down. She smiled at them, completely different form the child that had been taken down those same steps for punishments as a ward.  
"Thomas," the captain was sitting at a table, going through a stack of reports. Thomas was the captain of the guards in Redmont Keep and Wensley Village, he had a lot of reports to read through daily. "I'm glad you're here."  
"Angie," Thomas set his papers down, coming to his feet. "It's so good to see you."  
"You too, but listen, in your reports today, have you heard anything about three little girls or a boy in Ranger cloaks?"  
Thomas' brow furrowed looking down at his reports. He had only read through half of his reports, but nothing he had seen so far spoke of children in Ranger cloaks. He had never heard of children with the Ranger cloaks.  
"No, I haven't seen anything," he shook his head. "But why would children have Ranger cloaks?"  
Angie sighed, exhausted by the question and the less-than-favorable long answer that accompanied it. "It's a long story, maybe Will can tell you sometime," she scratched her temple with her thumb. "Or I can, if I ever find them," she turned and left the room before Thomas could say anything else to her.  
On the stairs Angie grabbed a serving girl and obtained directions to Battle Master Brian's rooms. The girl directed Angie up to the third floor of the inner keep to a thick wooden door set back in the wall. Angie looked around, to see if she had missed something. This hardly seemed like the door to Sir Brian's quarters, the man was a bit eccentric.  
There was nothing else there, this was the only door. Angie lifted her hand to knock. Before her knuckles even touched the timbers Sir Brian's voice cut through the silence.  
"What is it Ranger?" Sir Brian was coming up the stairs.  
He was a tall man, taller than King Horace and Angie would know since she had spent a few weeks with the king the previous summer, and ten times more intimidating. He had a scowl on his face, a look Angie had accepted as normal since that was the most common expression Angie could remember from the past ten years. He looked down his nose at her, waiting on her response.  
"It seems I'm not the only little girl in Redmont who likes to sneak out," she gave a wan half smile in an attempt to lessen the Battle Master's scowl. "Have you—or any of the knights—seen three little girls and/or a boy with Ranger cloaks?"  
"Why?"  
"Well, Will seems to think they're in some kind of trouble, and would rather not have to explain to their parents that he lost them," she shrugged. "I personally don't want to have to tell them, or Will, that something happened to them. I think they would kill me."  
Sir Brian arched a single brow. Poorly copying a look Angie was tired of seeing. She sighed.  
"I really don't have time to explain it, so have you heard anything?"  
"I saw three girls at the new Battle School site, said they'd been shot at."  
"So you know where they are?" she asked excitedly, glad this pointless search was finally over.  
"No. They ran away."  
"I wonder why," Angie muttered quietly moving to pass Sir Brian to continue her search. "What about the boy?"  
"I only saw girls," Sir Brian answered, watching Angie start back down the stairs of the keep.  
"Thanks for your help," Angie smiled up at him before vanishing around the bend in the stairs. "Will's not going to like this," she grumbled entering the yard.  
Starburst nickered a greeting from the doorway of the stables. She smiled, whistling for him to come. "Ready to ride?" she asked him, swing up in the saddle.  
_Always,_ Starburst shook his mane and snorted as she urged him out with a gentle touch of her heels.  
"Then let's ride," her cowl was ripped back from her head as Starburst's hooves echoed on the wooden boards leading away from the keep.

Dusk was settling over the countryside when Angie turned Starburst off the road toward the new Battle School site. She had seen nothing of the girls passing, and no one she had talked too had seen Evan. Well at least she had news about the girls. That would be something.  
Will was already at the gate when Angie arrived. He was speaking with one of the archers posted there for security. The man was speaking in a low voice to Will when Angie drew Starburst up beside her mentor.  
"Honest Ranger, we only fired warning shots. We would never hurt children," the man shook his head. "But Sir Brian was here, he frightened them more than our shots ever could. They rode off through the trees," he pointed the way the girls had gone.  
Will nodded, motioning with his eyes for Angie to go see if she could find their trail. "I don't fault you. They shouldn't have been out," Will assured the archer with his grim bearded smile. "Thank you for your help."  
"Not a problem Ranger, I just feel bad for shooting at them," the man rung his hands watching Angie. "Had I know who they were," he sighed.  
"You couldn't have known, and you didn't harm them. You were just doing your job." Will gave the man another grim smile, assuring him that there had been no harm done.  
"They were children," the archer persisted.  
"Who were misbehaving," Will returned. "Believe me, you've done me a favor," a small smile touched the archer's lips.  
"Will, I found their trail," Angie called over her shoulder. "They crossed the road and made toward the keep trough the undergrowth. They might be back at the cabin."  
Will nodded, swinging up in the saddle on Tug. "Thank you for your help."  
"Not a problem Ranger," the archer seemed ill at-ease about what Will had said to him. He had been raised with a fear of the grey and green cloaked folk, and though this man seemed normal enough the tales of his childhood were setting him on edge.  
Will nodded to the archer and clicked his tongue setting Tug to follow after Angie and Starburst. Angie had dismounted and knelt by the tracks of the three horses that had charged through the dense undergrowth. She sniffed standing and looking up at Will.  
"They were running the horses like a seawolf was after them."  
"Might not be too far from the truth," Will muttered while Angie mounted. "The archer tells me Sir Brian was out here and saw them."  
"That's what he told me," she still had not told Will about her conversation with the Redmont Battle Master. "He didn't see Evan though."  
"Neither did our friend at the wall," Will sighed. It was true he was more concerned about the well being of the girls, and he was glad that they were safe the last time they were seen, but Evan was alone somewhere in a large, highly trafficked Fief. That never results in good things happening, even more so because Evan is very strong willed. "It seems no one has seen your brother since we started close combat training after lunch."  
"I don't have a brother," Will arched a single brow. "Or sisters," Angie snapped instead of responding to expression. "I'm an only child who grew up as a Ward in Castle Redmont because Gilan, or Horace, or Queen Cassandra put me there. I don't have sisters or a brother."  
Will laughed at his apprentice's little speech, but it was only to hide the pain in his chest. She had never learned who had actually put her in the Ward at Redmont. She had never allowed him to finish that conversation, never let him take the blame for her childhood in the Ward at Castle Redmont.  
"I know several people who would disagree with you," he chuckled lightly. "Including the man who put you in the Ward," he watched her closely.  
"It was Gilan wasn't it?" she narrowed her eyes looking off in the distance. "He didn't want to make me a burden on anyone so he sent me someplace where they would take care of me along with a handful of other orphans." She nodded at her own theory. It made sense, "Or Horace."  
Will's brows rose in surprise. She was already so close to the truth. What could she possible pin on Horace that would make more sense than her theory with Gilan? How could anything else make sense? But this was Angie, her mind was a mystery to Will.  
"I bet he paid Zander—"  
"Baron Zander," Will corrected.  
Angie rolled her eyes, "Baron Zander, then, to take me in. The royal family probably paid for all of my expenses while I was growing up so I still wasn't a burden!"  
Well, that sort of made sense. And if Horace and Cassandra had thought of it, they probably would have. Will was glad they either had not thought of it or chose to do as Angie claimed. That would have made her even more of an oddity. The whole staff would have been curious about her origin if the King and Queen paid for her expenses, well more than they had been.  
"It wasn't Horace," Will sighed. Angie stopped Starburst and turned in her saddle to look at Will. "And it wasn't Gilan either."  
"You know who put me in there," she accused. "You knew my parents and you know who put me in the Ward."  
"I do," Will smiled walking Tug past Angie and Starburst. "But you told me last summer that you didn't want to know."  
"When did I say that," she urged Starburst to a trot to catch up to Will and Tug.  
"When you met your brother and sisters," he hid his smile beneath his cowl.  
Angie's mouth hung open. She had thought Will was going to degrade himself that night at the Gathering. Not give her important information about her mysterious childhood. "Can I take it back?" she called after him. Will only laughed.


	7. Chapter 7

It was dark in the clearing when Evan stepped out on the veranda. He looked up at the sky, where the moon was starting to crest the tree tops, and sighed. No one was back yet.  
He had expected Will and Angie to still be around when he returned. They had been so engrossed on whatever they had been doing, Evan believed they would have no idea anyone had gone. Thinking back he knew they would eventually finish that and move on to something that could involve him and the girls. That kind of poor forethought was what often landed him in trouble.  
He was under no delusions that he would be exempt from the punishments Will would be handing out when he finally returned with the girls. All four of them had gone off without telling Will, which was essentially the same conspiring against the Queen in terms of "do not do" with the entire Ranger Corps. And even though he had gone off in search of the girls, he had still left. No amount of excuses would make that okay.  
He had arrived back an hour before sunset, and he was still alone. He knew Redmont was a large Fief, but surely someone should have been back already. At least the girls should have found their way back to the Keep, it was hard to miss. Evan sighed sinking down in the canvas chair on the edge of the veranda. How long was he expected to sit there alone?  
"Well Teki," he turned to the black Border collie lounging by the stairs. "It looks like we're on our own."  
Teki lifted his head and turned a pair of mismatched eyes at Evan. The golden eye seemed to glow in the pale moonlight, giving the animal demonic look. Evan suddenly realized Will had named him the way he did. Teki was demon in Nihon-Ja.  
"No, don't get up," Evan laughed at himself. He did not like this alone thing as much as he thought he would.  
He just wished he knew what was happening out there. They had been gone for hours, someone should have come back. But if he left again there was a very real possibility he would miss someone's return, which would lead to an all night cycle of searches. That was the last thing Evan wanted.  
He sighed again, slouching back in the canvas chair and staring up at the wooden tiles that made the overhang. He could ride out to look for them. If he stayed close to the cabin it would be like he never left a second time, and maybe he could find someone. Evan lifted his head just high enough to look across the clearing. That would be better than just sitting around waiting for them to return.  
"Guard the cabin," Evan pushed himself up out of the chair and passed the dog with a pat on his head. Teki lifted his head watching Evan cross the clearing. Once the boy vanished into the trees surrounding the cabin Teki dropped his head on his paws and sighed, waiting and watching the cabin.  
Evan had traveled five meters away from the edge of the clearing when he heard the rustling. He stopped instantly, his eyes scanning the dense shadows around him. Something was out there, and he had only his knives for defense.  
Evan slowed his breathing as he searched for the source of the noise. His eyes were unfocused so he could catch any movement in the shadows as he stood perfectly still. He could hear the rustling, the sudden jarring movements of something close by but he never saw what was moving. It might have been that it was farther away than he thought, but…Evan's eyes flickered upward as he remembered something Will had told him: "No one ever looks up."  
"I found you!" Rachel tumbled out of a tree a meter away from Evan, landing heavily on her bottom. "I found him," she called over her shoulder climbing to her feet and dusting herself off.  
Olivia and Peyton dropped from nearby trees, landing with slightly more grace than Rachel and gathered around Evan. All three of them looked like they had been on quite the adventure; they had dust on their faces, streaks of mud on their tunics and knees, and bits of leaves in their hair, Olivia's was attempting an escape from the braid she had forced it into; the red curls were sticking straight out.  
"We thought you got lost in such a large Fief," Rachel grinned, her finger's idly running through her hair to brush it back from her face. "We've been looking for you for hours," her eyes grew wide as she spoke.  
They always did this. They always went off on their own, knowing someone would follow after them. It was a pitiful attempt at an inside joke the four of them shared. They always claimed Evan was lost and they were trying to find him. The Ranger they were staying with would have Evan's word against the girls' and would never punish any of them, at least not in a conventional sense.  
Making the joke now was like saying they would be able to get away with the daylong adventure. But the girls did not know Will Treaty as well as they thought they did, or even as well as Evan. Will strived for unconventional and he would be the first Ranger to punish them, all four of them. They would never evade this punishment, not after causing so much trouble for a Ranger training an apprentice.  
"I've been at the cabin, like we're supposed to be," he narrowed his eyes at the girls. "You're the ones who were lost in a strange Fief."  
"We were never lost," Peyton glowered at Evan. "We've just been exploring, we are Rangers after all."  
Olivia rolled her eyes with a brief shake of her head. "We're children Peyton."  
"Not Rangers," Rachel added, as if they had said that to Peyton several times during the day. Knowing Peyton, Evan knew that was a very real possibility.  
"We're as good as," Peyton still looked like she had won the argument, like she had not just been told that she was wrong. "And we found Evan, so Will and Angie can come back and not punish us for our little outing this afternoon." She said it, knowing the Ranger and apprentice had been out looking for them as well. This was a pattern Peyton knew very well.  
"I was never lost," Evan crossed his arms over his chest giving Peyton a look to rival one from Will. "I saw that the three of you were heading back to the Keep when I crossed your tracks earlier, I came back to the clearing."  
"I told you that was what happened," Olivia glowered at Peyton. "His tracks over lapped ours."  
"And I said to forget trying to follow him," Rachel huffed. "I was hungry hours ago!"  
"Was?" Peyton, Olivia, and Evan turned to Rachel, their brows rising in surprise. "That was past tense," Evan continued. "Past tense as in you're not hungry anymore?"  
"That was over three hours ago," Rachel looked around at the others, her voice riding somewhere between a whine and annoyance. "Are you really telling me you've never, just became not hungry?"  
Evan shook his head slowly. He had never heard of something so ridiculous. Olivia's brow rose higher looking at Rachel and Peyton chuckled lightly behind her hand. They had felt the same thing during their afternoon out, but they would never say they just lost their appetite as time passed. Evan had too, he just never realized it, or described it like Rachel had.  
"I believe that is strictly a 'you' experience," Peyton gave a small smile. "But I am starving now. So any idea how long it will be before we get some food?"  
Olivia rolled her eyes with a shake of her head, "We're not. Will is not at the cabin yet. Is he?"  
Evan shook his head. He had been at the cabin for hours and no one had returned. "They're still following you're back tracking, circling, nonsensical trail all over Redmont Fief trying to find you."  
"They're not looking for you?" Rachel, always innocent, asked her brow furrowing in thought.  
"Probably," he shrugged.  
"See, he's not immune to it yet. He's just a misbehaving child like the rest of us."  
Evan shook his head and led the way back to the cabin. Five horses were grazing by the veranda, Teki was stretched out on the porch next to a short man in a dappled cloak. The man's face was hidden by the cowl of his cloak, but his body langue told them exactly who was standing there. And that he was angry.  
Will Treaty had many experiences with the four of them, he considered them his own children much like the rest of the Ranger Corps. And he knew they liked to explore, he could accept that. What he could not accept was the carefree manner in which they conducted themselves when they entered the clearing and saw him standing there.  
The girls smiled. The childish, playful expression they always flashed their parents at the Gathering when they were avoiding a lecture. They batted eyes at him, trying to distract him from his anger. It was not going to work on him, Will Treaty was not going to be swayed from anger by three brilliant smiles and wide puppy-dog eyes.  
"Inside," he commanded keeping his voice in a low growl. The girls smiles faltered, they shuffled past Will up the stairs and into the cabin. He watched them enter and then turned back to Evan. "Inside," he repeated, the boy quickly entered. Will followed, closing the door behind him.  
The girls were sitting at the table, the larger one Will had borrowed from the meal house in Wensely that would accommodate the six residents of the small cabin. They sat huddled together on the long side, their backs against the wall. Evan was still standing, he was behind the girls, with his arms crossed over his chest. How many times had they done this? How many times had Evan stood protectively over them before a Ranger, ready to come to their defense?  
Probably too many.  
"Do you realize how much trouble you four have caused today?" A simple question; do they know what they have done wrong?  
"We were trying to find Evan," Peyton answered. She was lying, Will could tell by how quickly she had supplied the response.  
"We saw him ride off," Olivia supplied, another lie. Will would have noticed Evan riding off on his horse. He would have heard the other horses when one rode off alone.  
"And he was gone for an hour," Rachel hesitated. Their story was not rehearsed. They had just made it up. All three of them were lying to him.  
Will turned his attention to Evan. Would the boy be truthful? Or would he join the lie?  
Evan looked Will straight in the eye and held it for a full minute. "I was practicing cartography, when I noticed I hadn't heard the girls. They were gone, obviously. I saddled up and rode out to find them."  
"Why not tell me they had left?"  
"You're training an apprentice. That takes precedence over locating three misbehaving children." Evan glared down at the girls, they each gave a small smile at Will. "I followed their tracks until I saw they were heading toward the Keep. Then I came back here, but you had already left to search for us."  
Will suppressed a sigh. Evan was truthful and had ridden out with good intentions, but he had still gone off alone. Will could not go easy on him. Will would have to punish all four of them equally.  
"Well, since I have two different stories I don't know what really happened." He saw the girls facing lighting up, they thought they were evading punishments. Will hid his smile, "but what I do know is that Angie and I wasted a good part of the day looking for you. Why is that an issue?"  
"You were practicing tracking," Peyton again. She must always initiate the story; she is always quick to respond. "All Rangers need to practice their skills."  
"We didn't need to work on tracking," Will responded evenly. "We were supposed to go out on a patrol."  
Four shoulders slumped. Will would have been a fool not to know what that meant. They were realizing their mistake.  
"Who knows what could happen since I did not patrol the Fief."  
"Bad things," Rachel looked at the table in front of her.  
"Yes, bad things. And bad things are going to happen tomorrow too."  
"You're punishing us?" Peyton's head jerked upright, her eyes meeting Will's for the first time since entering the cabin.  
"Yes, I am." He said it sternly. He was not giving in to this. "And it starts right now," Will pointed at the doors leading out of the main room. "It's time for bed, you have a busy day tomorrow."  
"What about dinner?" Olivia asked.  
"It's time for bed," Will repeated standing aside to let the four children pass. "You have a lot to do tomorrow."


	8. Chapter 8

"I'm hungry," Olivia sighed staring at the dark ceiling of the room the girls were sharing.  
"Me too," Peyton let out a long slow breath as she unbraided her hair. "It's not fair we don't get to have supper. We were just exploring the Fief."  
"No, it's completely fair you don't get to eat," Angie snipped from her bed, the only thing in her room that was still solely hers. "What's unfair is that I'm suffering because of that little adventure." She glared at the girls in their cots on the other side of her room even though they could not see the facial expression.  
"We could make our own food," Rachel tossed her blanket aside, setting her bare feet on the floor. "We've made campfire food at the Gathering. We can slip out the window and Will would never know."  
They were talking about sneaking out, right after being punished with a lack of food for sneaking off in the first place. Angie sat up in her bed, watching the dark shadowy figures of the girls as they climbed on the bureau to open and slip out the window. Did they really not realize why they had been sent to bed without food?  
"You're not being serious?" she asked throwing the blankets aside to follow after them, kneeling on the bureau as she leaned out the window. "You're just going to get in more trouble," she called after them in a hoarse whisper.  
"Will won't find out, we'll still act sad and hungry in the morning," Olivia's face glowed in the pale moonlight when she looked back to Angie. "You can come too," she offered with a smile.  
Angie bit her lip debating following after them. Will had told her when she first became his apprentice that he knew everything that happened in the clearing, including when she snuck out. And she had seen him in action several times over the past year, he did know when she had snuck out, and she was reprimanded for disobedience.  
Granted, she had never thought to go out the window in her room. But it was still sneaking out, something she was not supposed to do. Her rebellious streak started shouting in the back of her mind, _He'll never know. These girls obviously do this often enough to know how not to get caught._  
"No," Angie spoke more to herself than to Olivia. "Will said we have a lot to do tomorrow."  
"Rangers always have a lot to do," Peyton scoffed at Angie, crossing her arms in a manner resembling Angie's friend Maddie, the Crown Princess and former apprentice of Will Treaty.  
"And Will sent us to bed."  
"Are you really going to be sent to your room like a misbehaving child?" Peyton's brow rose, a decent imitation of Will's expression.  
"I wasn't sent to my room, you three were," Angie retorted glaring at the girls.  
"We'll now we're sneaking out. You can join us, or you can just be hungry," Olivia turned away from Angie and the cabin, leading the other two out into the forest.  
Angie bit her lip again, watching the three small figures disappear in the trees. She should follow after them and make sure they stayed out of trouble. But if she just went off, Will could see it as conspiring with the girls. This was a no win situation, and that was something Angie did not believe in.  
"Let them get in trouble," Angie grumbled sliding off the bureau and turning to the door. She had not been sent to her room as a disobedient child, she could go make food in the main room of the cabin. She did not have to sneak out to get food.  
She pulled the door of her room open slowly, and walked into the main room of the cabin. "Well," Angie jumped hearing Will's voice. "That took longer than I expected."  
"You expected them to sneak out?" Angie gave a failed attempt at the raised brow over her thin smile.  
"I knew they would," Will stood from where he was reading his reports at the table. "I've heard the stories."  
"So what are you going to do about it?"  
"I told them we have a busy day tomorrow," Will smiled at Angie, and it was a smile Angie had never seen on his face before. The smile was one that her cousin Johnny favored, the wolfish smile that harbored ill tidings.  
"I have never been so happy that you've never used that cunning on me."  
"Oh I have," Will turned his smile on Angie, a genuine smile. "You've just never been in on the plans before." Angie's brow rose, her eyes widening.

* * *

Axle Vladimir Ajam stood at the edge of his balcony looking out over the estate he had recently acquired. The man who had left it to him had been kind, too kind and too trusting of a man he just met. That man had been a fool to trust a half-dead stranger who had escaped slavery in Picta. He must have come from the south to be so trusting of strangers so close to the northern border.  
It was all working to Axle's favor, so he could not find reason to complain. But at the same time he could. A man was dead, though it was indirectly Axle's fault, the strong Picta slave turned general felt the guilt building in his chest. A man was dead because Axle Vladimir Ajam had needed a strong base in Araluen to being a campaign.  
Watching the landscape in the pale moonlight he tightened his hand around the railing of the balcony. Things were moving too quickly and too slowly all at the same time. He should already have his army assembled, ready to spread out and take this Fief. But it seemed like only days ago that he was presenting his idea before the leaders of the Scotti Clansmen, it was still hard to accept that they were willing to let an Arridi ex-slave lead their army in Araluen.  
"The end justifies the means," he whispered to himself, still thinking on the dead duke whose estate he was now occupying. In the end this would all be worth it, all the deaths, all the families he had torn apart. When he succeeded nothing like this would ever happen again, he intended to make sure of it.  
"Sir," one of the mercenaries hired from Araluen stood at his door. This man was the leader of the original band supporting Axle, he was the closest thing to a friend Axle had known in a long time. And even that was not enough to give the man trust. Trust was earned, that was the one lesson he still remembered from his father.  
"What is it?" Axle Vladimir Ajam did not turn from the moonlit scene before him, it was too beautiful to waste. "Can't you see I'm busy?"  
"My man has just returned from Redmont," the mercenary responded. "He says you'll want to hear what he found."  
"Not tonight," Axle took a deep cleansing breath, his hands involuntarily clenching around the railing. "Tonight is a time for celebration."  
"Sir?" the mercenary asked, unsure of what the man was saying.  
"Can't you hear it, Julius?" A smile pulled at Axle's lips despite himself.  
In the silence that followed, Julius could hear the faint sound of music. He tilted his head to one side, trying to determine what was causing the noise. He realized what it was; an orchestra was playing on the grounds.  
"Sir, why are you up here alone?"  
Why was he alone?  
Because he was always alone; Ajam of Arrida had been alone since he had been ripped from his family in a Tualaghi raid as a child and sent to Skandia a slave. Vladimir had been alone when he escaped the slave yard in a remote city in the frigid mountainous country. As a young boy Vladimir had traversed the mountains alone to return home, adopting a new name in a new place. Changing to help accept the facts as his life changed around him.  
In Picta he had adopted another name, one to define him in a new light. He was the pin holding the world as it rotated, he was going to bring a new change on the world. He was Axle now.  
"I needed a breath of fresh air," he lied, forcing himself to release the edge of the balcony. "I've never been one for crowds," he forced a smile as he turned to Julius.  
"My apologies, sir," Julius bowed his head briefly. "I did not know you were entertaining guests this evening. I will have him report to you first thing tomorrow."  
Axle nodded to Julius, folding his hands behind his back as he crossed the balcony toward the man. "No need to apologize," he met Julius' eyes, a habit he had picked up during his time in the battle pits of Picta. Looking a man in the eye for any duration of time was unsettling, Axle wanted this man wary. "I know our mission takes precedence over this foolish social formality."  
A small smile touched Julius' mouth, breaking eye contact with Axle. "I understand, I will have a report readied for you once the, ah formalities, have ended."  
"If that is all?" Axle closed the door from the balcony behind him, crossing his quarters for the hallway.  
"Of course," Julius inclined his head at Axle's back as the Arridi ex-slave crossed the room.  
Axle sighed, his shoulders relaxing once he was out in the hallway. More lies, lies upon lies upon lies. The pressure was building inside of him. This was not the way his parents had tried to raise him, these were not morals his people taught. Yet here he was, buried beneath the expectations of his adopted Clan and his own plans to make the world a better place.  
He took a deep breath and ran his fingers over his clean-shaven scar covered head, lingering on the eight-pointed brand at the base of his skull, the mark of his former master and now brother in arms. That brand was his history. All those scars were his legacy.  
Axle took another deep breath and straightened his tunic, making his self appear to be the young noble who had inherited the estate from an estranged uncle. Another lie, another part of him sacrificed for the sake of this mission. He could not hide in his rooms any longer, he had to make an appearance at social event and begin gathering supporters.  
It was all part of the plan.  
The ballroom was lit with a chandelier. It was something Axle had never seen before coming to Araluen, he had spent most of his life a slave though, a laborer for other men or a fighter in a cage. He stopped inside the door to gaze at the splendor of the structure, such a useless thing hanging from his ceiling.  
"My Lord," a young noble woman smiled at him as she waltzed around the room, waving before she was whisked away in the music. "Please save a dance for me," she called as her escort led her away.  
Axle smiled, inclining his head at the girl while she could still see him. So many of the girls wanted a dance, they wanted him as their escort, thinking they would join him in the estate. If they knew the truth, he sighed at the thought.  
He would be nothing to them if they knew the truth. Or they would imprison him as the criminal he really was. He knew, deep down in his core, that it would be the latter. And he could not allow that to happen.  
So he forced the smiles and waltzed with the ladies in their glamorous gowns, spoke with the stiff, strict men as they drank wine from crystal goblets. He pretended to be the young nobleman they were expecting. It was all for the sake of his plan.  
Nothing was going to get in the way of his plans.


	9. Chapter 9

Will and Angie threw buckets of water over the curled sleeping figures in the cots in the apprentice bedroom. The three girls jumped from beneath the blankets, sputtering and wiping their soaked hair out of their faces. Enraged they turned on the Ranger and his apprentice.  
"Will," Olivia cried, holding her soaking shirt out away from her torso. "I was sleeping!"  
"I was having the most wonderful dream," Rachel sighed wringing water from her shirt. "Why would you throw buckets of water on us?"  
"Because it's time to get up," Will answered handing Peyton and Olivia the two buckets he was carrying while Angie handed hers to Rachel. "Like I said last night, we have a busy day today."  
Peyton looked down at the bucket she had been given then to the window they had crawled back through after a few hours of exploring the forest around Castle Redmont. Then she looked back at Will and Angie, "It's still dark out."  
"So it is," Will agreed. "I told you all last night we had a long day ahead of us."  
"You said busy, not long," Rachel pursed her lips, still trying to wring water from her shirt. "Why are we up so early?"  
"We need water," Angie answered.  
"That's the apprentice's job," Olivia dropped her water bucket, folding her arms across her chest. "We're not apprentices."  
"No," Will smiled at the three children. "No, you're not apprentices, and with the way you've been behaving you might never become apprentices."  
"But we haven't," Peyton started.  
"Listened?" Will guessed at her next words, stopping her defenses in her throat. "Behaved? Acted like a person with any common sense?"  
Peyton snapped her mouth shut, her eyes narrowing. This was new territory for her. None of the Rangers had ever accused them of misbehaving. They did misbehave, but no one had ever said anything to them, normally it was a proverbial slap on the wrist with a, "don't do that again." Will was calling them out on their less than admirable behavior, and none of them could say that they had been behaving.  
"I thought so," Will turned to exit the room. "Now hurry and get dressed. If you don't have the water before breakfast is ready, you'll have to eat it cold."  
"You're not going to wait for us?" Olivia shrieked, dropping her bucket.  
"There are four of you," Angie smiled mischievously as she backed out of the room. "I get it done all by myself everyday in time for breakfast."  
When Angie left and had closed the door the girls glared mutinously after her.  
"I don't like staying with Will," Peyton decided striping off her soaked shirt.  
"Me either," Olivia sighed. "I thought it would be fun to stay with Will. He always has the most awesome adventures."  
Rachel sighed as she pulled on dry clothes. "I wonder if Evan got water thrown over his head?"  
"I hope so," Peyton pulled a dry shirt on roughly, pulling her hair roughly out of her collar. "Because if he didn't I'm going to push him in the creek."  
Evan had been doused with water like the girls. His hair was still clinging to his face when the four of them started out for the creek with buckets to carrying up the water. He said nothing to them, and walked apart from them. They all received the message clearly, this predawn wakeup was their fault and he was mad at them.  
"I have stayed with all of the Rangers," he finally spoke to them as they carried up the last of the water. "All fifty fiefs, and I have never had to get up in the middle of the night."  
"Well aren't you just perfect," Peyton huffed, spilling water down the front of her breeches. "Sorry we ruined your perfect record."  
"You know this is because you snuck out last night," Evan snapped. "He knew you left, I heard him talking about it with Angie."  
"She ratted us out," Peyton seethed. "I knew we couldn't trust her."  
"He was still awake when you left," Evan rolled his eyes as the cabin came into view. "If you insist on sneaking around you should at least learn how to wait for everyone to go to bed."  
"We were hungry," Rachel gasped setting her filled bucket on the ground beside the water barrels. "He shouldn't have sent us to bed without supper. That wasn't very nice."  
"Worrying him wasn't very nice either," Evan replied sharply dumping his bucket in the barrel. "He has an apprentice, that is more important that entertaining you three all day long."  
"I know that already," Peyton grunted lifting her half filled bucket up to the lip of the barrel. "Everyone already told me that, I'm tired of hearing it."  
"Good, maybe you'll actually remember it." Evan dumped Rachel's bucket in the water barrel for her, and helped Olivia lift hers to the rim. "Now all three of you need to go in and apologize to Will."  
"Only if we get a hot breakfast," Peyton decided starting for the steps.  
They had a hot breakfast.  
Despite Will's threat about finishing on time, he did not have Angie begin cooking until they were almost finished carrying in the water. The plates of bacon, eggs and sausages were just being placed on the table when Peyton entered with folded arms.  
Will smiled pleasantly pouring milk into four cups from the children, "I see you managed to complete that task on time."

Angie thought the punishments would be intense when Will started handing them out. She had expected a tough regimen of chores and training sessions for the others under the leveled gaze of the gruff bearded Ranger. But she was disappointed, what she had expected was the exact opposite of Will did.  
They got started extremely early, but other than that the day was just like the day before. Only Will focused everything on the girls and Evan, making Angie feel like she was back in the first year of her apprenticeship, learning all her basic skills all over again.  
They practiced Archery for an hour, tracking for most of the early morning while the sun was still rising, all of the household chores, knife throwing for the rest of the morning and had an early lunch so they could ride out on a patrol. Only Will was leaving the girls and Evan in the care of his good friend George Carter, the Scribe Master in Redmont Keep. George had promised to keep them entertained, and by that Angie knew it would be a very tedious, boring task he found entertaining that would drive Evan and the girls toward insanity.  
Will escorted them personally to the library where he was meeting George.  
"Will," the old Scribe Master had somehow managed to look older than he had the last time Angie had seen him, his wrinkles were more prominent on his face, and his hands looked more like paper than skin. He greeted the Ranger with a firm handshake, grinning.  
"George," Will smiled in return. "I hope I haven't inconvenienced you," he turned to look at the children, who Angie was keeping from escaping while Will was speaking.  
"Not at all, no," George answered turning to face the children.  
"These three are Olivia, Peyton, and Rachel," Will motioned to each in turn, waiting on them to nod slightly to claim their name. "And the boy is Evan."  
"It's a pleasure to meet you all," George beamed at the children walking toward them. "I have some very exciting things to do today, and I could use some help."  
"You do know were trained as Rangers?" Peyton's brow rose looking up at the old Scribe Master. "You don't have to speak to us like we're five."  
"Stop being rude," Evan hissed, digging his elbow in Peyton's side.  
"It's not very nice," Rachel added under her breath smiling at the Scribe Master who had decidedly ignored Peyton's comment. "And he's just an old man, we out number him."  
"Yes, you do outnumber him," the girls jumped at Angie's comment. They were not use to a fifth person standing so close to them. "But you're in a keep, and the guards know to be looking out for you."  
Olivia's brow arched looking back at Angie, "so?"  
"If you're seen anywhere without the Scribe Master, you're going to the dungeons until Will comes to retrieve you." Angie grinned at them.  
"We are not," Rachel smiled up at Angie.  
"Why would anyone throw three innocent little girls in the dungeon?" Olivia made her eyes grow wide looking up at Angie, making her look completely incapable of ever misbehaving.  
"Because I hear they're not so innocent," the five Ranger children turned around to face the tall Battle Master of Redmont. The young girls took several shuffling steps back from the tall knight, pulling at Evan to put him in front of them, forming a barrier. "And they act like they're not too innocent either."  
"We are very innocent," Olivia managed to squeak from behind Evan.  
"But we are wary of knights," Peyton added.  
"Especially ones who don't believe us we when tell him the truth." Rachel finished, watching the knight from around one of Evan's arms.  
Will looked between the kids and the Battle Master. No one told him that Brian had been told who the girls were and did not believe them. He would have remembered that if Angie had told him. All she had said was that the Battle Master had seen the girls.  
"It seemed bit ludicrous," Battle Master Brian turned to the questioning expression of the grey bearded Ranger. "I had not heard of the Ranger Corps having children. You understand my skepticism of their claim?"  
"We showed you the necklaces," Olivia responded crossly. "It the signal of the Ranger Corps, a Battle Master should have recognized it."  
"No one has ever said anything about twin oakleaf necklaces," Sir Brian folded his arms looking down at the children. "It could have very easily been a ploy."  
"We're children," Peyton crossed her arms and looked up at the knight, one of her brows rising.  
"Well now I know better," Brian looked back to Will. "How many of them are there?"  
"Only five," Will responded with a smile, coming up behind the Ranger's children, laying a hand on Rachel's shoulder and the other one on Angie's, encircling all five in his arms. "So if someone else says that to you, they're lying."  
"I didn't know she was one of you," Sir Brian narrowed his eyes at Angie. "She was raised in the Ward."  
"She was," Will held back further explanations. He did not want Angie to hear why she was raised in the Ward like this. When Angie learned the truth, he was going to tell her at the cabin when they were alone. Not in front of Sir Brian and the other Ranger's children.  
Angie looked back at Will, her eyes narrowing marginally. He was not saying something, but Will was always not saying something. She could see conflict behind his eyes as he looked at the Battle Master. Was he going to explain why she was raised in the Ward? Was she going to hear the reasoning for the Ranger's sending her away while they kept the other four?  
Sir Brian took a deep breath and let it out slowly, realizing that Will was not going to say more on the matter. "I will be watching after these four personally," he smiled down at Evan and the girls. "Don't worry Ranger, they'll be here when you return."  
"Thank you Sir Brian," Will smiled releasing the children. He knelt down in front of them, a smile creasing his face.  
"You're really going to leave us with these two?" Rachel asked in an almost inaudible whisper, her eyes moving between the Scribe Master and the Battle Master.  
"I am," he answered quietly. "George is a good friend of mine. He said he had some fun stuff for you to work on. Maps to look over; and some histories that I think you'll all like." He smiled at all four of them looking them each in the eye. "We'll only be gone for a few hours, and then we'll go back to the cabin and do something really fun."  
"But," Rachel sighed.  
"No one's ever left us behind before," Olivia's eyes grew large and watery as she looked at the Ranger.  
"It's a large Fief, and it could be dangerous," Will caressed Olivia's cheek with his gloved hand. "And I'm not leaving you behind."  
"It feels like you are," Peyton sighed, kicking the floorboards with the toe of her boot. "You're going on a patrol without us."  
Angie rolled her eyes, folding her arms over her chest. They were being overly dramatic, trying to weasel their way back in Will's good graces. She knew Will would never give in, once he made up his mind it was set in stone. "Come on Will, we have to go on patrol."  
"We'll be back soon." Will smiled as he stood up and followed Angie out of the library.  
"You're getting soft," Angie commented once the door was shut behind them.  
"I am not," he defended himself half heartedly, forcing the smile away.


	10. Chapter 10

"This was an original map of Araluen, it shows the original forty Fiefs and their keeps. It even has a listing of the Barons who ruled the fiefs," the wrinkled Scribe Master spoke excitedly, like the old map they were not allowed to touch, was the most fascinating thing in world. He had talked about everything like that. The oil painting of the Queen and her late father King Duncan, the portrait of the late Baron Arald and his wife Lady Sandra, a thick book with the histories of the Fiefs, a scroll he had brought from the island nation Nihon-Ja, the old round shield with the crude oak leaf painted by Ranger Halt while he and Horace where riding across the Gallic countryside, a large boar head that hung in the library.  
That had actually been interesting. It was the boar that Halt had slain to save his apprentice and a Battle School student. The girls had been really interested in that, they could have listened to the Scribe Master regale that tale all day long. Evan had also enjoyed that, he had always dreamt of going on a boar hunt. But the Scribe Master was not fond of the subject and moved on quickly.  
"Can we do something else?" Peyton raised her hand like they were in a lecture at the Gathering. "I know history is important, but it's so boring," she whined.  
"Of course," at least the old man realized that he needed to change the subject. George had little experience with children, but Will had warned him about the girls and the need to constantly keep them interested in a subject. Their quick disinterest of the subjects had resulted in George finishing the four hours' worth of prepared activities in just under an hour. "How about we go down to Lady Helena's office? How would you like to learn the secret code of the couriers?"  
Olivia sighed folding her arms over her chest, "We already know that."  
The Scribe's face fell looking between the four children. "Already know?" he asked in a mutter that the Ranger children took to be meant for himself. "Will thought that would be something for you to do today."  
"Can't we go explore the Keep?" Rachel stepped forward, smiling sweetly at the Scribe Master, her hands folded behind her back. "Or maybe go to the archery range, and you and the Battle Master can watch us practice."  
"No," Sir Brian stood up from where he had been watching at a table near the door. "We're not going anywhere where the four of you can cause trouble."  
"How can we possibly cause trouble at an archery range?" Olivia inquired, turning her large blue eyes up at the tall Battle Master.  
"Will said to stay in the library," Sir Brian crossed his arms looking down at the children. "He told me about your little adventure yesterday."  
"He's over reacting," Peyton smiled up at the knight.  
Brian raised his brow inquisitively at the girl, "I've never known Will Treaty to overreact."  
"Then you must not know him very well," Olivia responded stepping closer to the knight. "He always overreacts to anything we do."  
"He is very protective," Rachel added joining Olivia before the Battle Master, her smile broadening. "He was over exaggerating, that's all."  
Evan smiled watching the girls trying to persuade the Battle Master. They were trying their best, and Evan could see the Battle Master starting to sway. How was he to know how much trouble the girls could cause? How was he to know that they were playing him for a fool? They were masters of persuasion after all.  
"And Will might be gone for hours," Peyton added joining her sisters standing before the hardened knight. "Do you really want to sit in here the whole day?" The question was almost too innocent.  
"I'd much rather sit here watching you than risk you escaping," Evan saw resolve enter the knight's features. He was going to keep them in the library. He was going to do as Will advised. He was a lot stronger than most strangers who dealt with the girls; Evan had to admire him for that.  
"We would never do that," Rachel's smile was too innocent, her eyes too large. The Battle Master had no idea. "All we want to do is practice archery. You know the Rangers have a motto: A person practices until they get it right. A Ranger practices until they never get it wrong."  
"Is that so?" George perked up, always curious about the mysterious Ranger Corps, he wanted to know more. "Do they really say that?"  
Peyton managed not to roll her eyes, but her smile faltered slightly. "Yes, they do," she managed to reply in a sweet voice.  
"Fascinating," he mumbled to himself, turning to look for a quill and some parchment, "I must write that down, and ask Will about it."  
"As true as that may be, we are not going out to the archery range and we are not going out to explore the Keep," Sir Brian's brow fell to a point as he looked down at the girls. "If you are bored with this topic we will move on to something else."  
"But we've looked at everything in the library already," Olivia's lower lip puckered slightly looking up at the knight. "And we need to be able to run around."  
"You'll do plenty of running once Will comes to collect you," the Battle Master responded curtly.  
"But we've done everything we can," Peyton whined slightly, a tactic she found highly effective in most cases. "If we stay here we'll just be sitting until Will and Angie come back."  
"I sure I can find something for you," Sir Brian gave a small half smile turning for the door.  
The girls grinned following after the knight, only to be stopped at the door by a pair of guards. They retreated quickly from the guards who stood at rigid attention. The guards looked down at the girls and Evan and gave a slight smile.  
"Any trouble Scribe Master, sir?" one of the guards asked, his eyes lifting for a moment to look at the Scribe Master.  
"Oh, no. We're getting along nicely," George answered wearily, wondering what Brian could possibly have planned.  
"Good to hear," the other smiled down at the children. "Not to worry, Sir Brian will be right back."  
"Where did he go?" Evan pushed himself away from the table he had been leaning against and started for the door. "And why did he send the two of you in here?"  
"We've been watching the door," the first responded. "Special request of Ranger Treaty."  
"It's like he doesn't trust us at all," Olivia mouthed quietly to Peyton and Rachel.  
"We did sneak out," Rachel reminded her, eyeing the guards suspiciously.  
"Yes, but this is ridiculous," Peyton whispered, leaning to toward the other two. "He's become a little eccentric."  
"I think he's the first one to actually go about this the right way," Evan spoke in a low voice, but loud enough for everyone in the room to hear him. "Will has more important things to do than chase you three around all day."  
The girls huffed glaring at their brother. How many times was he going to inform them of that? Evan smiled in response, unbothered by the looks the girls cast.  
"Could you stop repeating information?" Peyton crossed her arms. "I'm tired of everyone talking about Angie all the time."  
"Only because they're not talking about you anymore," Olivia turned on Peyton. "It can't always be about you."  
Rachel sighed turning to face Peyton and Olivia. "I can't believe you're going to have this fight again."  
"Stay out of it," Peyton snapped, pushing Rachel away from her.  
"Stop picking on Rachel," Olivia shoved Peyton backwards.  
"I don't need you to defend me," Rachel pushed her way between Peyton and Olivia, glaring at Peyton. "And you can't tell me what to do!"  
"I can tell you to do anything I want," Peyton dropped her hands to her sides forming fists. "I'm older than you."  
"Barely," Rachel returned quickly, her hands clenching to form fists at her sides.  
"All three of you stop," Evan pushed the three girls apart. The guards lay their hands on Olivia's shoulders and George took a firm hold on Peyton, Evan placed his hands on Rachel's shoulders to keep her from lunging at Peyton. "We're supposed to be on our best behavior."  
"If Peyton wasn't always trying to start fights," Olivia tried to move away from the guards, but they held her firmly between them.  
"I do not," Peyton almost escaped from the Scribe Master, who had not expected the girl to try and attack one of the others.  
"Yes, you do," Rachel lunged at Peyton, Evan barely managed to restrain her. "If it's not all about you, you make it that way."  
"I do not!" Peyton shouted, her eyes narrowing dangerously at Rachel.  
"Stop lying to yourself," Olivia shouted from between the guards. "We all know you want to be the center of attention and you'd do anything to be there."  
"What is this, 'Turn on Peyton Day'?" Peyton asked shrilly, straining to escape the Scribe Master. She wanted to tackle both of them. She knew she had an attitude problem, that she wanted all of the attention on her all of the time. But Olivia and Rachel had no right to say all of that about her in front of other people.  
"Peyton, stop it," Evan snapped. "And you two too," he glared over his shoulder at Olivia while tightening his grip on Rachel. "This is not how we were raised to behave."  
"What? Now you're going to pretend to be perfect," Olivia scoffed. "We all know you hate us, so stop trying to be the 'good big brother' and go be perfect somewhere else."  
"I never said I was perfect," Evan returned hotly.  
"So you do hate us," Rachel spun out of Evan's grasp. He had been so distracted by the comments that he had not anticipated Rachel's move. The youngest of the girls stood facing him with clenched fists; her hazel eyes narrowed farther than Evan had ever seen them.  
"Rach," he offered weakly reaching out for her, his anger about the fighting squandered by the look from Rachel. He could have taken it from Olivia or Peyton, but not Rachel.  
"Of course, we're just a burden aren't we," Rachel growled, her hands starting to shake.  
Rachel stormed from the library. Peyton and Olivia tore free of the hands restraining them, the men were so shocked by the sudden turn of events they forgot to hold the girls. Olivia and Peyton followed Rachel out into the hallway, but that was as far as it went. Out in the hall they separated, moving off to explore the Keep on their own.  
Evan sighed watching after them. He should have denied the claims about hating them. But some small part of him could not do it. He liked being separate from them, he liked being Evan and not having to worry about if those three were safe, or happy. Surely he did not hate them, but at the same time, he did.


End file.
